Water Conservation Symposium Set for Thursday in
Waco

The Lone Star
Chapter of the Sierra Club and a number of
other organizations are sponsoring a Brazos Valley
Water Conservation Symposium in Waco this
Thursday, June 21 to highlight the ways in which
the region may meet its water needs through enhanced
water conservation.

The symposium, subtitled “The
Business Case for Water Conservation,” is
aimed at water utility professionals and
local decision-makers; interested citizens
are welcome to attend.

Co-sponsors of the symposium include
the national Alliance for Water Efficiency, the
Brazos River Authority, the City of Waco, the
National Wildlife Federation, and the Texas Water
Foundation.

“Water Conservation is essential
to meeting our state's future water needs,” said Jennifer
Walker, Water Resources Specialist with the Sierra
Club. “Our goal with
this symposium is to provide utilities with the
tools to plan for and implement water conservation
programs in their communities. We have brought
together experts in water conservation to share
their experience and lessons learned with Brazos
Valley area water providers so that they may
have the best conservation programs possible.”

Newly-appointed Commissioner Toby Baker of the
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ)
will keynote the symposium. Featured presentations
will focus on

..state water conservation requirements,
..national efforts to promote conservation, ..the success
of the San Antonio Water System in pursuing conservation
while sustaining the financial health of the utility,
and ..the progress made on water efficiency in North
Texas through networking by area water providers.

The symposium will close with a panel discussion
of representatives from medium-sized Texas water
utilities about their experiences in implementing
water conservation.

The symposium in Waco is similar to events held
in the Austin and Houston-Galveston metropolitan
areas last year and this spring. Those events sparked
enhanced water conservation and drought response
actions in those metropolitan areas and have spurred
more information exchange and even joint projects
among water suppliers in those areas.

The Brazos Valley symposium will be held at the
Hilton Waco. Registration is from 9 to 9:30 AM,
and the sessions will run from 9:30 AM to 3 PM.
Lunch will be provided to attendees. Cost of the
symposium is $35. Persons wishing to attend may
register online through the Texas Water Foundation
at "www.texaswater.org." The full agenda for the
symposium is available at that web address. For
more information, call the Texas office of the
Sierra Club in Austin at 512-477-1729.